A dog's tail
by Catygirl
Summary: In the pilot episode there is a collie at the farm, this is the story of Madam Secretary season 1 from a very different point of view.
1. Chapter 1

A Dog's Tail

 _I am now a big fan of Madam Secretary, but I wanted to look at some parts of the series from a different angle. Here is a quirky look at the McCord family from an unusual point of view. Meant to be a bit of fun. Hope you enjoy._

Now I have got to tell you that if I had been asked about these changes to my family I would have said no. I sat in the family meeting, I heard all the arguments but no one gave me the chance to vote. It is ridiculous, who do they think is going to be affected the most. I have lost my beloved land to run on, my rabbits to chase and my favourite spot at the hearth. I would have voted no, many times no.

Let me introduce myself, I am a black and white collie named Jake and my family are Team McCord. They would class me as their pet, but that is not the case, you see although they don't know it, they are my pet's, they belong to me.

So back to my story, my life was going well, rabbit chasing with the horses by day and relaxing by night. What I do not need is to be in the middle of a city. Unfortunately that is exactly where I have found myself, all because of that tall man in his large car. He arrived at my house, in his big motorcade and within weeks we were moving. The human's all had a meeting, they all agreed that it would be good for them but not one of them thought about me. Anyway, I digress, the meeting was interesting. Mom wanted to go, you could tell, she wanted this change but she really didn't want to pressurise the others. Dad, on the other hand, he seemed a little gobsmacked as if these changes were a huge surprise. The words Secretary of State meant nothing to me, hey I'm a dog, but it must be big, they all seemed to think it was a major deal. The kids had different reactions, mostly favourable but I have taught them to bargain well, I never agree to anything without my favourite treat being offered. So the kids, all of them, even Stevie who had already moved to college, made their demands for the move. I was very proud of them if I do say so myself. However the end result was that we were moving.

It appears that one of the biggest changes that I have to deal with is an extended family. I first met the men and women of the 'detail' the day before we moved. They are generally big, they all wear dark glasses, even on dark days and they are very serious, not one of them responded to my cute face and wagging tail – I was not impressed! So I made sure to put my very soggy tennis ball on one of their polished shoes, I'll show them exactly who is boss around here. Anyway, they were discussing everything from travel, to friends visiting. In all honesty I had zoned out for a bit, in my defence Dad had a very appetising sandwich on his plate and if I was very sneaky it would have soon been in my stomach. Anyway, I was pulled from my attempt at liberating lunch by the words, "and we will have to discuss the dog!" I looked up, to see all eyes on me; perhaps they were reading my mind and could see I wanted the food, so I quickly put on my innocent face.

"We are not giving up Jake." Jason, always my favourite, spoke up.

In the end, the issue seemed to be more, how was I to get exercise in this new house as opposed to whether I was coming with them or not. I couldn't see the problem myself, surely I would just run, anywhere. Well that dream was quickly shattered when I finally saw the pitiful excuse for a garden in this new home.

I apologise, I am jumping around again. For many days the farm was in complete chaos, each of my pets was trying to put items into boxes, often trying to move mine but I was on to them and each toy that went in a box was quickly liberated by yours truly. Apparently this was not me being my usual helpful self. So I was locked in the under stairs cupboard and when I returned all my toys were packed. I was determined not to be beaten but alas, the boxes, the family and myself were packed and moved, with a flashing light car in front and behind us, in remarkably quick time.

The new house left a lot to be desired. Stevie hadn't come with us, something that I knew Mom and Dad were unsure of. Allison and Jason had made a bolt for the stairs to try and select the best room for each other and I needed to see for myself. I made for the stairs, ready to launch up them, when I was rudely caught by one of those 'detail' people.  
"Right pooch, time for your walk."

He did not look happy to be taking me away from the house. So this is what had been decided, I was not to be walked by my pets but by this interloper. As I did need to relieve myself, I decided to play along, for now, but if he thought I would bow to his orders at all times, he had another thing coming.

Once we were back, some order had been restored. The lovely rug that was my second bed had been placed somewhere that I could enjoy the new fire, see I told you I had them under control. The sofa had arrived and been placed and I promptly made a bee-line for it. Just as I landed on the clean, grey covers three voices yelled at me.

"Jake!"

I looked up, what could be the problem; I was always allowed on the furniture before. I looked down and suddenly saw the problem, large black paw marks. Now surely I could not be blamed for this, it is not my fault that walking along those roads outside would cause me to get this muddy. It was not like I had rolled in anything as I used to at the farm. I firmly laid the blame at the 'detail' who should have provided me with a towel and a brief dry before letting me into the room.

After that first mishap, apparently it was decided the new furniture was not for a dog, like I say my family think they make the rules really it is me. All it took was selecting the softest target – Allison, on a night where Mom and Dad were not in the house and voila, I am back on the sofa. Mom just gave her a look and Dad simply sighed, they may have moved me to this loud, dangerous place but the sofa was still mine!

So we had moved in, I had found a very nice area to run in and even had my old walkers back with me. It seems that walking hand in hand with me and some of the 'detail' was just what Mom and Dad needed after a stressful day, again I had won. Things were going quite well, but one of the most annoying things about our new life is the hours that my pets now have. The kids, well they are around as much as usual, and Dad he is actually around more than usual but it was Mom's new hours that clearly affected the family. Many times the kids asked about where she was or where she had gone, at times it was even causing arguments, something that had never happened at the other house. Even if I could get used to not seeing Mom very often, what was even more surprising was the late night visitors, they seemed to come at all times. One, an older man who had visited the farm before, even seemed a little insane and the worry that he brought to Mom made me want to bite him. Later I heard he died and Mom was very upset. I tried my usual efforts to comfort her but as was often the case it was only Dad that could do it. I placed my nose on her lap anyway to show that I gave her my support too. The late night visitors didn't stop there, what was so special about my new house that people had to visit in the dark, if it wasn't Allison's friends or Stevie's boyfriend. Oh did I forget to mention, Stevie moved back. Oh she was not happy when she discovered her room wasn't ready for her, mind you it was me who had to give up my bed for her – well sometimes you have to be the gentleman and give a lady the sofa. Fortunately, once all the boxes were moved, Stevie went up the stairs and I was left with the sofa.

Where was I? Oh yes, late night visitors. Somehow I always got the blame when informing others that someone was at the door. What am I supposed to do, if silly humans want to visit at that time I am going to tell them exactly what I think, I don't care if the person is incredibly important, they are disturbing my sleep and I am not amused.

So the new house began to grow on me, I had the place to myself during the day and made the rounds of all the beds upstairs. I much prefer Mom and Dad's. Jason's is hard to find under all his stuff, although I did spend a very nice day removing it all, Jason now closes his door. Allison's smells weird, perfumy, made me sneeze so I gave that a wide berth. Stevie's isn't bad and on the days when Dad remembers to close his door then her room can make a nice bed, but the double in Mom and Dad's room is the best. They have nice cushions for me to lie on, and oh the soft blanket, it's the same one from the farm and I just love it.

It came as quite a surprise when everyone started packing again, if I could talk I would remind them the hassle we had gone to in order to get here. They were going to somewhere with a Taj something, nothing that I would be interested in I feel. I assumed they were all going and I would be left with 'the detail', I cannot tell you my delight when Dad and Stevie did not go. Although that was short lived. I had rarely seen Stevie cry, she was a strong young person who didn't show emotion easily and only really tolerated me. However that night, I was her best friend and she sobbed into my coat, which would get matted but sometimes you have to go with it, I had never seen her so distressed. She was also mad, angry and really unhappy – at Dad, now of all the members of my family Dad was the one that no-one got angry with. He was always calm, always kind and usually tried to placate every situation. What on earth could he have done to Stevie?

I don't know what an affair is but it seems that it is a big deal. Stevie thinks he has betrayed Mom, I'm not sure. He is definitely lying as he claims he is working but I have seen him not focussed for many days now, not like he normally is when he is writing, usually I get the whole story – chapter and verse. This time, he is not even paying attention to me, time to bury something important I think.

Before I get the chance Mom is back, there had been a crisis of some sort, no one tells me anything, but here she is asking the question. Has Dad had an affair? I am surprised at Dad's slow answer, and pounce on both of them to get them to see sense. It eventually works out but I can see the strain of this new house is beginning to tell, perhaps it is time for me to convince them to move back to the farm. I must consider my options.

AN: Hope to add more to this, but have run out of inspiration at the moment. Will see what I can come up with. I do love the idea of looking at things from a dog's point of view.


	2. Late Night Visitors and House Leavers

Late night visitors and house leavers.

 _Having received the reviews I did get some inspiration so here is chapter two. Set over three episodes, So it Goes, Collateral Damage and Game On. Jake has been added to several of the scenes in a way which I think a dog would act. As always just some fun, enjoy!_

My goodness, my readers it appears you wish to hear more of the musings of this your humble servant. Well the family have seen some serious developments in the last month or so therefore it is fitting for you to be informed of these.

It is important to understand that while I do rule the house, I am not in control of the comings and goings. Although there are times when I believe that putting me in control would absolutely improve the situation. I am pretty sure that if I stopped people arriving or leaving there would be less stress, we would be having more fun and most importantly more people would be paying attention to me. I don't need much, a place to sleep, food in my bowl, the opportunity to visit the facilities when required. However it has been brought dramatically to my attention that when everyone else is stressed my needs move from the top of the list to further down.

Let me illustrate, breakfast is a crucial time. I have behaved well over night and expect certain things when morning comes. Firstly, usually with 'the detail' I need to have a brief excursion outside. Then, with Dad, I get my morning snacks. Finally, most of the family in no particular order provide me with love, more snacks and a general chat about their day before they all disappear to their places of work. This routine was working very well until this particular morning. To start with it had been a late night, but I will get to that later, so Mom, Dad and I were very much at the end of our patience. Anyway Allison picked this very morning to be dancing on the spot for some reason. Naturally when someone is acting strange it is my job to join in, so I bounced along with her and knocked a few things off the counter – not my fault. Stevie was running around talking on her cell phone, now is it my fault that she did not watch what she was doing. I tell you, I get blamed for everything. Now it is possible that I could have watched where I was in relation to her feet, but I was fully involved in watching Allison's as she jumped on the welcome mat. I have no idea what she was trying to attack on the mat but I was very engrossed in helping her. I just happened to move into the path that Stevie was carving around the island, just at the point when she passed me. Needless to say I got the blame when coffee, cereal and a variety of other things landed on the floor with Stevie and her phone in the middle of the puddle. I knew before I was asked that the pantry was where I needed to spend the next several minutes. It appears that I am now to be kept out of the way at breakfast, I don't expect this will last but I will play along and wait my opportunity.

Now where was I, oh yes late night visitors. I have explained before that Mom keeps strange hours nowadays but this last few weeks have been ridiculous and I have been very vocal in pointing out my unhappiness. The visitor was the same several nights in a row, a nice lady, she has visited before but this time she was here for the long haul, and by that I mean that they took over my sofa for nearly the whole night. I was unceremoniously dumped from my sleeping sofa when I had assumed everyone was heading to bed, the kids had gone up, Mom was in her sweats and Dad looked pretty relaxed. It all changed when the woman appeared with big white folders and they spent hours looking over them. No-one played with my ball, no-one took me out and no-one gave me a treat, I was most put out. Then to add insult to injury I was faced with the big white board. I mean why on earth would you need a great big board in the middle of the room. Surely you could put anything on the wall that you wanted, there is no need to put something up that could easily come down. Perhaps you are seeing a theme to my story today, that of things falling down. The white board was at fault this time. On the first night, after I had been completely ignored in favour of white folders, the board went up and some pictures went on it. Now Mom and Dad were being a bit secretive about this meeting and this board. The plan was clearly to make sure that none of the children saw what was on it so it got packed away when they were heading for bed, finally. On the second night, I was ready for it, Dad began to move it from its hiding place in the cupboard to the living room, well I was not going to be ignored again. I waited for it to be almost in place and then I pounced, the board flew backwards, hitting Dad on the head in the process. The photographs, all neat and laid out, scattered. Mom was shouting at me and, in fairness, the other woman just laughed. It would appear that this is not the appropriate thing to do in this situation. Apparently the board is a smidgen more important than me and as such I was reprimanded. Fortunately I was not sent to the 'detail' and none of them came to see what was happening which was good as well. I was sent to my basket.

I have not mentioned my basket before because I rarely use it. It is a place of humiliation, where I am sent when I have done something wrong. I get no treats there, therefore it is a place of despair. I had not been punished much in this new house, well there were no rabbits to catch here and bring into the kitchen for Mom, and no garden for me to enjoy digging. This was the first time I had been sent to my basket and it was all the fault of a white board.

I am happy to say that my punishment only lasted that night and I was back getting tit-bits at breakfast seemingly forgiven. I spent a lazy day on the sofa, as I had not slept fully in the basket. The day took its normal course and soon my pets had returned but that night was quite distressing. I had decided to try and make it up to my pets, clearly the last couple of days had not shown me at my best what with knocking Stevie and Dad over in a very short period of time. I waited for all my pets to go to bed, pretending to be asleep on the sofa, but if one of them had paid attention they would have seen my ears were still very alert. Anyway, after a short amount of time I crept up the stairs to my pet's room. I decided it was best to go right to the top, the kids would love me whatever I did but I knew who was in charge of feeding me.

I made my way along the corridor and through the small gap in the door, did I mention I can open doors myself, yes a trick that helps a lot in my life. What greeted me was a bit of a shock. Mom was upset, I could hear it in her voice. She sounded like her whole world had crashed around her. I could do nothing else but walk over to her, put my head in her hand and try to comfort her. If the rest of her life was in turmoil I needed her to know that here in this, albeit annoying house, she was cared for.

It should be pointed out that while I am in full control of my pets at home, what happens elsewhere I cannot be held responsible for. So it came as rather a big surprise last week when Stevie was packing up again. She was mad, she was really mad. Something Mom had done was really getting to her. I tried to use all my wiles to get her to stay, I had even managed to empty her suitcase several times. However she was having none of it, she was leaving and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. I waited by the door for Mom to come home, surely Stevie wouldn't leave without speaking to her. She had her case ready and I was hoping that Mom could solve the problem. I sat between them my head moving from one to the other as they spoke to each other. I could tell that this was not going well. I tried to add to the conversation, I barked at Mom and then at Stevie, and what did I get for my efforts, you guessed it – the basket again. Now this time I really feel that it was not an appropriate punishment, I could have dragged them together by their jackets, I could have knocked them into each other. No all I did was try to get their attention, to break the tension. I will be voicing my displeasure at this punishment at a later date. Of course Stevie moving out has its own set of benefits, there was now a very comfortable bed upstairs for my exclusive use. The day after Stevie moved out, I moved in. Myself, my favourite toy and comfort blanket were quickly taken up the back stairs when everyone else was out. It appears that my pets found this very cute and I was all over Facebook – whatever that is. I got a lot of likes and can only hope that this is continued for many days.

Much to my displeasure, barely a week has passed and I have been kicked out of my penthouse bedroom. Stevie is back, although she isn't very happy, and more worryingly Mom and Dad are leaving. Now back at the farm we had occasionally been left alone, sometimes with a neighbour popping in but this was the first time we had been left with the new house, new friend's and the 'detail'. I was a little concerned about who exactly would be looking after me. Jason was away so I had no hope in that direction and while both the girls cared for me, they often forgot my list of needs and wants. I was therefore preparing for a lean couple of days, where I may not get fed at exactly the right time and I would have to rely on the 'detail' for my comfort breaks. Oh this would be so humiliating, especially if I had to beg to be let out. The degradation!

Well the first day went relatively well; I was fed at the appropriate time, although Allison seemed to forget that I often had a morsel of chicken on my dinner. I tried not to worry, at least I had food. In the evening we were all sat on the sofa, the TV on, both the girls on their weird computer devices. Then after a brief discussion Stevie stood up to leave. Now even I knew this was not a good idea, Allison was not to be left, that was why Stevie was staying. As ever I tried to reason with them, unfortunately they both thought I just wanted a treat. It's such a shame that I can be distracted so easily, one delicious treat later and Stevie has left without me even noticing. Well given my complete failure to stop her leaving I took it upon myself to ensure that the front door was guarded to protect Allison.

You can imagine my surprise when Stevie arrived back with a member of the male species; Mom and Dad were not going to like this. They were on the phone so I started barking to try and get their attention. It was to no avail and the boy remained. What happened next has given me nightmares that I may not recover from. Allison and the boy on my sofa, kissing. I was shocked, disgusted. Naturally I tried to get in the way of the couple, nudged the boy out of the way, tried to jump between them, grabbed Stevie by her jumper and pulled her to see them and what they were doing. Nothing worked. I was just about to pick up my full water bowl and dump it on their feet when Stevie walked in and asked whether Allison wanted the boy to stay. Oh my word, I didn't know where to look. This was such a bad idea. I did what any good pet would and stood at the bottom of the stairs menacingly refusing to let them pass. I held my ground, I could see Stevie wavering and I snarled some more. Now this does not come naturally to a quiet beast like me but in times of great peril you need to rise to the occasion and I was doing just that.

Remember before when I said I control my pets, well it appears that the control is increasing, I made one snap at the boy and Stevie changed her mind and demanded to take him home. Hurrah, I have accomplished my mission, Allison is safe, the boy is leaving and again the sofa is all mine!

AN: So I think this may last a bit longer, will see where inspiration takes me. Thanks


	3. When Jake Met Gordon

When Jake met Gordon

A short addition to my Dog's tail story based entirely around the episode "Whispers of the Ax".

Now my dear readers this is a short interlude that had to be told. It involved one of the most horrific days of my life. Now those of you who have read my previous tales will know that in my life I am in control and others need to bow to my plans. However on this particular day I had almost met my match.

This day had started normally, a breakfast with my family, titbits for me of course, then a short nap. It was at lunch on this day that my world turned over. Dad had decided that we should go and get Mom for a walk. I agreed wholeheartedly, if nothing else I would get to go to Mom's work and be fawned over by others who clearly wanted to see me. Off course there were others there who didn't like me, Blake for instance was decidedly cool to my charms. However I wasn't to be put off by him. Dad put on my lead, we got in the car and drove to Mom's work. Now the cool part is that unlike some offices, ie the university they used to work in, I was allowed into Mom's work.

We walked in the door, got signed in, patted down and allowed into the elevator. It was at this point that I noticed something very alarming. There was another scent in the small room, not one of a person but that of another dog.

Before we go any further I do need to point out that I am not a jealous beast. On the farm I shared my family with other four legged animals, of course they were not allowed in to the house, like me. But that aside I didn't mind sharing my family, but I not been expected to share with another dog before.

I was keen to discover the location, the exact type and nature of the interloper and make sure that it was put in its place. Now could I also point out that it is not my fault that Dad was not paying attention to my needs and as such didn't have full control of my lead. Therefore I was not to blame when the doors opened and I did what came naturally, put my nose to the ground and followed the scent, at speed.

What happened next was not my finest hour, the scent was not easy to follow and required me to take a full inventory of the outer office. By this I mean going under all the desks, opening several drawers, dragging scarves, coats and various other items from their place. All the time with Dad chasing me, but I wasn't paying any attention to him. I finally caught the scent beside Blake's desk, he didn't look happy but the trail was going in the direction of Mom's office. This more than anything set my senses on alert.

I made a dash for it, pushed open the slightly ajar door and came face to face with my nemesis. This interloper had taken up residence on Mom's couch, you should remember dear readers who is really in charge of the sofa – ME. This was an insult that was not going to go unpunished. I had practised my growl on that boy several weeks ago who tried to stay over with Ali and now I was willing to show my teeth again to get rid of this dog. Unfortunately for me the dog had more backbone than that snivelling child from the house. I was a second too late to realise that the other dog had also bared his teeth. It appears that he felt my Mom's office was actually his domain.

The scene was set, we as dogs were ready to compete for the rights to this office, the humans, mine and this other man who clearly belonged the mutt on the sofa, were just not quick enough. Before I had the chance to increase my growl the interloper bounded down from the sofa. Dear readers I am afraid to say that my courage deserted me and I ran from Mom's office to the outer office. Now sometimes it is prudent to ensure that another dog cannot catch you and to do so you need to weave in and out of objects. Luckily I am well trained in the art of an obstacle course. It is as I manoeuvre under Blake's desk, past something that is clearly valuable that I take a moment to thank Allison, Jason and Stevie for being fantastic owners and teaching me how to get through small spaces at speed. The other dog is on my tail but I do manage to get away from it.

Off course neither of us are paying all that much attention to the chaos we are leaving behind us. The office is in complete disarray, papers are flying everywhere, people are screaming, and then there is an almighty crash. Now, may I add it was not I that caused this noise but actually a member of 'the detail'. Yes I will admit that the person in question was chasing me, but that large, gold, beautiful, sculpture was not broken by me.

What actually stopped the carnage was Dad's whistle. He's very good, often uses it on the kids, very rarely on me but I did listen this time. The other dog finally responded to its master and I trotted back to Dad. It was then that I looked round. There were people all over the place, some standing, other cowering in the corner and finally some actually on the floor, looking a little worse for wear. Ooops.

Oh dear.

I looked towards Mom who had managed to lose her shoe during our chase and was looking quite bedraggled. I went immediately for the innocent look, it was not my fault that she had let in this mutt, this interloper, in fact it really was her fault. I moved from Dad's side to Mom's my head a little down, hoping for a little sympathy or comfort. It was not to be this day. I had managed to cause total and complete chaos when all I had wanted was a lovely walk with my humans.

Needless to say, Gordon and I have never met face to face again.

AN: So obviously didn't happen but I couldn't resist this once the idea came to my head. Will probably do a few more chapters but need the inspiration. Hope you enjoyed. Thanks for reading.


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